Author Topic: Nemesis Campaign - Comments  (Read 29223 times)

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Offline procyon (OP)

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Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« on: March 20, 2010, 09:08:34 PM »
For those who wish to say their peace, point out my (rather frequent) mistakes, or just feel like letting their thoughts be known.  Thank you to those who read the story, it makes it all the better to write when you know someone is reading it.
All the best,
Procyon
(For any that are curious, procyon was my call sign in the military.  They let me know I was the little dog on the porch.)
... and I will show you fear in a handful of dust ...
 

Offline Beersatron

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #1 on: March 20, 2010, 09:20:51 PM »
I am enjoying the read.

I like underdog stories but I think that the (older?) sister may have bitten off more than she can chew!

The Chinese seem to get dealt blow after blow militarily but seem to have caught a break with the shields.

The US appears to be on an even keel.

The Pan Euro look like the strongest, but this latest chapter (at time of writing this post) seems to have them about to loose some hefty assets.

Keep it up :)
 

Offline mavikfelna

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #2 on: March 20, 2010, 09:39:18 PM »
It doesn't look like any of them are paying much attention to income growth. Not that I can blame them too much with the imminent threat they face.

Is there any particular reason none of them have bases protecting their off Earth assets?

And I think your daughter needs to absorb some non-aligned earth nations. :)

Actually, from previous comments you've made, it sounds like this campaign has ended and you've started something else. Any chance we'll get to see the new stuff?

Keep up the stories, they're great!

--Mav
 

Offline procyon (OP)

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #3 on: March 21, 2010, 03:13:23 AM »
Here's a couple quick answers, to the best of my knowledge.  I don't always know the kids' or my wife's reasons, but these are the best guesses at some.

As for the older sis and biting off more than she could chew - I agree.  She wasn't at all familiar with some of the parts of the game.  She was comfortable with 3rd/R and 4th Ed.  But she had always liked to run smaller empires and make her money off of freight lines, hiring out to the other players, and exploiting systems they didn't want.  She stayed under the radar per se while the others competed for top dog.  She made her money off low maintenance/small fleet, hid her warships in her FT's, and was a good commerce raider/deal maker.  (Thank goodness she is an artist.  If she became a used car dealer, the world could suffer for it.)  In this game with the CP engines and small incomes translating to small FT fleets, she found her penchant for running FT lines was actually going to cost her money instead of make it.  With no warp points to work off of, she didn't have any unclaimed territory to park on.  The weapons/no drives made her FT-warships overly vulnerable.  Her prior strategy just didn't work and for quite a while she was a fish out of water and really struggled.  She persevered, but it takes quite a while.

The Chinese get hammered for a while.  I don't want to give any spoilers, but they are the one to watch for the coming months.  It starts to get REAL interesting starting with the end of November.


The US-Euro alliance gave them the biggest military strength, but they both operated small ships for the most part.  They understood they were flying garbage cans with firepower.  Against the Nemotians, they understood they were mostly a paper tiger without shields or drive fields.

As for income growth, they had gotten used to 3rd, and liked the slower pace of growth they used in it.  It took time to emplace populations and grow them.  Most of your income growth came from TL advances.  After a 4th Ed with rather rapid growth, they were looking for a more TL increase oriented game.  I think I put it in the preface (maybe not) that they were only growing on the 10th turns, and pop was only growing 1.5% every ten turns.  The low FT fleets, and high cost (x3 normal) of shipping made moving more than one or two PTU a turn a real poor investment.  Most CFN fleets were only big enough to move 10 or 12 PTU a turn a most.  Building FT's for the Govt Pool actually lost money for an empire (the 20% going to EL research plus maint was more than a speed 1 FT made by a long ways.  I allowed them to get x3 income for renting to keep it in line with CFN shipping costs, but FT's still lost money for you if you kept them).  Slow growth, no money in FT's, and almost no settlement oportunities kept a tight lid on income for quite a while.  I had also ruled that each planet/AB had to be individually surveyed (at a reduced cost in survey pts), so the only bodies past the main belt that were surveyed (in the first 10 turns) for colonization were the US Trojans - and they didn't want to be the only out system targets.

As for off earth bases, the SS of the US/Euro/China were all armed, but (I think) they had thought that it was going to be a game that involved more fluid competion for the outer planets, and then I am sure they planned to be jumping to other systems rather quickly.  I think (don't know) that they had an agreement to leave each other alone inside the belt (notice no interplayer combats even when tensions were high or opportunities present in these first few turns inside the belt), and when they found the outsystem dificult to occupy, didn't bother with fortifying in those areas (it would have been a waste in my opinion for these first turns) - and didn't have the spare income or construction assets for a while to do it with the inner system.  With their low income, the low maint of stationary defenses would have been a plus.  On the other hand, with no tractors, they couldn't build and them move things to where they wanted.  The mobile shipyard's build rate of 4 HS a turn was awfully slow, and made building a base in the belt a big gamble.  I know the middle boy (China) considered it and talked to me about it.  But he was sure that Ceres would get hit before he could finish even a BS0 (he was right).  With shields popping up for him, bases dropped LOW on the priority list.  REFITS jumped to the top.

As for this game, it is still going (at turn 93 now).  It just isn't the only game going.  My family has rather varied interests.  We have two starfire games running at the moment with different themes (the other is about 40 or so turns in - I'm writing during my break and don't have anyway to check), a zombie survival game (the boys love it), and a game that includes the nine and six year olds with the big kids called Grimm based in fairy tales that makes all the players into 9-12 year olds (they all actually like to play, and the little folks don't feel so overwhelmed - the oldest girl runs a lot of that one, she loves fairy tales/is a big daydreamer/and makes some really cute and cool stories.)  We have one other game that is kind of in the test stages (playtest), but I don't know if I can talk about that one publicly or not, so I won't for the moment.

As for the daughter absorbing non-aligned nations, I felt bad for her too - but it doesn't happen.  Keep rooting for her though - she's a quiet and determined little gal.

Hope you enjoy the rest of the story and thanks again.
... and I will show you fear in a handful of dust ...
 

Offline cjblack

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #4 on: March 22, 2010, 12:59:28 AM »
One comment on R&D costs:  The percentage costs for EL research (and also item development) only apply to income from PU/IU.  FT leasing, CC revenue, trade income, tribute from occupied populations, etc. are not included.
 

Offline procyon (OP)

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #5 on: March 22, 2010, 03:04:06 AM »
Your right about the R&D costs, but with a paper and pencil game with my wife and the kids, some shortcuts on the math were found to be neccessary early on.  The middle boy and oldest girl were only 9 and 12 respectively when they started playing, and making them keep track of too many numbers made them lose interest.  (They were definitely in it for the fighting at that point.)  It was just easier to just total up everything and go from there than make them keep track of a number of separate totals.  But it helped so much with their math skills I really wanted them to stay with it.
My wife and oldest boy just got used to that way of figuring costs.  Its another house rule that we probably could have done away with by the time this game started.  When this one got going they were 12 and 15. We just never have dropped it, but you are very right.  And it would have helped them a lot with their limited incomes.  In this game, every nickel counted.
Perhaps on the next game we will drop that way of figuring R&D costs.  Of course by then the current 9 and 6 year old may be the new players, so maybe not.  Time will tell, and thanks.
... and I will show you fear in a handful of dust ...
 

Offline Hawkeye

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #6 on: March 22, 2010, 04:51:30 AM »
Quote
Thanks for reading, and please don't think my family is as dysfunctional as it sounds.
We really do love each other (most days).

Well, "In love and war..."  :)

Looking forward for more
Ralph Hoenig, Germany
 

Offline mavikfelna

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #7 on: April 01, 2010, 03:38:38 PM »
You know, I really hope China gets pasted. I hate to say it but his type just rub me the wrong way most of the time.

At the same time, I'm rooting for the FSC.

I really hope your random events even out too. They seem to be rolling all in China's favor. :)

Latest turn was really quite interesting and I can't wait for Feb now!

--Mav
 

Offline procyon (OP)

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #8 on: April 02, 2010, 12:47:17 AM »
You would never recognize China away from the gaming board.  He is the one who will bend over backwards for the other kids.  If one is grounded from candy, he will try and sneak them his because he can't stand to see them suffer.  Picks up his sisters chores when she has play practices, and does laundry for mom when she is at work.
Give him something to compete for, and that all goes away.  His motto in this area is if you are fighting fair - you don't want to win bad enough.  He is murder on the football field.

The random rolls do seem to love China.  They hated everybody else here at the start.  Sorry.  Did make for a decent story.  What comes easy is oft taken for granted.  The US/Euro and especially the FSC are real proud of what they accomplished as the story progressed.

Writing Feb is going to take a bit.  The last 13 turns have at most 4 pages of play notes.  Feb has 14.  Patience, it is worth it.
... and I will show you fear in a handful of dust ...
 

Offline procyon (OP)

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #9 on: April 10, 2010, 01:34:58 AM »
Sorry it took a bit to get this part (Feb 2204 pt 2) done.  My wife's sister and three kids came to visit for a week.  Some things just had to wait.  

My wife told me so in no uncertain terms.
... and I will show you fear in a handful of dust ...
 

Offline mavikfelna

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #10 on: April 22, 2010, 05:15:12 PM »
Ya know, the Chinese are just walking away with this. It's annoying. :) And with his other out system colony at Venus not getting any attention at all it looks like he's going to be staying on top. At least he finally cooperated a little bit with the Mars defense, that was lucky for the US. Not that any of his ships survived. At least the reduced maintenance for the US and EU should help.

--Mav
 

Offline cjblack

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #11 on: April 22, 2010, 11:46:57 PM »
I think China only has a shipyard at Venus, given that type V planets are permanently uninhabitable for Terrestrial races in Starfire.
 

Offline procyon (OP)

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #12 on: April 23, 2010, 01:08:53 AM »
As to the station at Venus, yes it is only a space station/shipyard. He keeps it so that he can build ships,etc without the other players spying on him.  No populations and no CFN to worry about snooping on him.  China's only off world population was at Ceres in the asteroid belt, and it just went away.

The bad news for you mavikfelna, China wasn't helping the US defend Mars at that point.  He just really wanted payback on the aliens for nuking Ceres. It was pretty much just an enemy of my enemy thing.  I kind on think the middle boy (china) was still sore about losing every engagement early on/being ganged up on by mom and his older brother.
Nuking his sisters only RDS earlier on was just mean though.

(slight spoiler alert)
You probably won't be happy to hear that it will get even worse for the US/Euro before this month is over.  
Really bad in some cases.
Mars isn't out of the woods yet.
... and I will show you fear in a handful of dust ...
 

Offline procyon (OP)

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #13 on: April 23, 2010, 10:11:07 PM »
My oldest boy is putting together a write up of the other campaign we just started a little bit back.  They are all based off of one original campaign, and his is the actual continuation of the original.  It would currently have about 150+ turns of history in the previous parts, but has been slightly 'reinvented' to allow the players to grow without having to rub shoulders with all of them sharing the same home system. It is currently about 20+ turns in.   If you are interested in seeing the other more traditional half of the Nemesis Campaign (known as the Empires, or now New Empires campaign), give it a look.  I put together the forward for it as he was gone for a number of months to basic and AIT for the army and would have been missing part of what had happened if he had written it up.  He goes by drakar if you need to find him.

The link is
http://www.starfiredesign.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=42

(hope I got that right - the web filter where I am at blocks me when I try to check)
(if not he will likely fix it)

Otherwise thanks for reading and hope you enjoy the stories.
... and I will show you fear in a handful of dust ...
 

Offline drakar

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Re: Nemesis Campaign - Comments
« Reply #14 on: April 23, 2010, 10:13:55 PM »
You have the correct link. Hopefully bringing more of an audience over to the SDS site will also hopefully increase the count of players and members there as well. There is always a welcoming to new or returning players.
Sappers Forward!
833rd Eng Co Motto